Novelist's odd way of getting inspired

Writer's block is a difficult situationfor both veteran and aspiring writers. When it strikes, most writers go crazy and some even to the extremes.

Best selling Author of The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown, has revealed how he tackles the situation by hanging himself upside down.

Taking to Sunday Times, the successful author of many books has said that when he lacks inspiration to write, he straps himself into a piece of gym equipment that can be turned upside down, the Daily Mail reports.

The 48-year old writer has said that he does the inspiration trick at his home in New Hampshire, UK.

"It does help. You've just got to relax and let go. The more you do it the more the more you let go. And then soon it's just wow," he said in an interview with the Sunday Times.

"It does help. You've got to relax and letgo. The more you do it the more you let go. And then soon it's just wow,"

This inversion therapy, according to experts, can improve concentration and memory as it increases the blood flow to the brain.

The revelation about his bizarre self motivation style has come to light as the author is heading to release his new novel, Inferno.

The book is the latest of his series featuring symbology expert Rober Langdon. The book is expected to be another bestseling hit.

Brown's books have previously been translated into 52 languages and as of last year had sold more than 200 million copies combined.

But a word of caution, dear aspiring writers! Don't try such stunts, because they can be risky. Writing comes spontaneously. It is just a happening with no external laws applicable to it.

Passive smoking turn kids antisocial

Kids exposed to second-hand smoking in early age may develop aggressive behaviour, say researchers from University of Montreal in Canada. "Those having been exposed to second-hand smoke, even temporarily, were much more likely to report them-seleves as being more aggressive by the time they finished fourth grade,"said a researcher.

More evidence of life on Mars

Scientists are hopeful of life on Mars after the discovery of a baterium living in -15 degree celcious on Ellesmere Island in the Canadian high Artic, which is nearly as cold as that of the surface of Mars and the Moon of Saturn, Enceladus. Yes, isn't it an exiting discovery of the year?

Itching is not about just about sratching

The molecule behind itch has been discovered, a new study says. The research done on mice by the National Institute of Health, USA identifies the small molecule, natriuretic polypeptideb (Nppb) as being behind the sensation. The molecule released in the spinal cord triggers a process that is later experienced in the brain as itch.

Calcium gives longevity to women

A moderate dose of calcium supplement daily can help women live longer, says a study by researchers at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Taking the supplement up to 1,000 milligrams per day can boost bone health, among other benefits. Although moderate use s recommended, past studies have linked calcium to heart disease.

Mathematician Ramanujan to live on screen

Slumdog Millionaire fame Dev Patel will do the life of the legendary mathematician Srinivas Ramanujan in an upcoming movie. Director Mattew Brown has chosen him to act the role of Ramanujan in the film based on Robert Kanigel's book on Ramanujan, in the film based on Robert Kanigel's book on Ramanujan, The Man Who Knew Infinity: A Life of the Genious Ramanujan.

Charge your phone battery in 20 seconds

Eesha Khare, an 18-year old Indian-American girl has invented a super-capacitor device that could charge a cell phone in less than 20 seconds. The new device, while charging quickly, can also pack a lot of energy for long time. Google reportedly has an eye on the new device.

Egos will lurch you in exams

Big egos of students never yeild them high marks, says a study at the University of Otago, Australia. After observing 300 marketing students, the researchers have found that bigger results. Students with an exaggerated belief in what they deserve tended to do worse in their exams.

New turns and new worries in Asia

Giving jitters to USA and other western forces in Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai visited India last week. According to the British newspaper Guardian, the Afghan president would seek Indian assistance to boost Afghan armed forces. Many Afghan army officials are being trained in India based on a pact between the two nations two years ago.

Serving the poor with haircut.

For Anthony Cymerys, Wednesdays are days of receiving many happy hugs.

These soulful hugs are from people who line up before him under an oak tree in Hartford's Bushnell Park, Connecticut, USA.

Cymerys has been cutting hair for homeless people who live in streets and receives a hug as payment that expresses love from both sides.

A hug for a haircut has long been a norm that helps many otherwise unkempt-haired people to look civilised.

Also known as Joe the Barber, this 82-year old began serving waifs after retiring from a career in business 25 years ago. Earlier he had cut hair for his family but he took this haircut sevice after being inspired by a church sermon about the homeless.

Then he set about helping the dis-advantage people; his thought was he didn't want the homeless to look homeless, Huffington Post reports.

On Wedesdays his clients line up park benches and wait for their turn while Cymerys finishes with each. Some of them also turn up for the free meals provided on Wednesdays by a local church. Cymerys uses electronic clippers powered by a car battery.

"It really is love. I love these guys," Cymerys said. He paused and turned to his clients in the chair, "You know i love you,right?" reports Huffington Post.

This old man's slients service to the poor is now attracting wide attention. The truth is that he had started to do this not for fame, but simply to help people.


After having haircut from him, homeless people walk out confident and beaming.

UK paper rapes India's live-wire mesh

Indian authorities need to see the flipside of their self-projection of india as the next global power. This sanitised version has not many takers abroad, it seems.

The British newspaper Daily Mail ran a story last week on the dangerous electric lines that cover the skies of most cities.

The report focusing on Old Delhi begins by wondering at the task of an electrician in India in the times of power-cut. "This is the neightmare facing power workers in Old Delhi where tens of cables get so tangled up that it is almost impossible to tell which wire goes where,"it says.

In the capital city electricity cables remain tangled in the skies above hundreds and thousands of people who are oblivious of the danger.The live-wire meshes that pose a safety risk hardly get any attention. Everybody seems to take things for granted.

The only time people take any "extra care" is during monsoons when the water-clogged streets and overhead electric wires could become dangerous.

In New Delhi, the nations capital, government has been planning to take wires underground. Thanks to bureaucratic delays, works haven't yet taken off. The report also mentions last year's major power outage over two days left 670 million in dark.

It is time authorities stopped bragging and started doing things.

Near-death experience, a vivid experience

Is'near-death experience' just a figment of the mind? Many beleive so. But there are still many who claim to have seen a bright light at the end of a long dark tunnel while in coma.

Anyway it is quite intriguing topic. But according to a new study,people who have had nearr-death experience can remember it 'vividly' and emotionally' even years later.

"It's really something that stays in the mind of people as a clear trace, and it's even more clear than a real memory," said Vanessa Charland -Verville, a neuropsychologist in the Coma Science Group at the University of Liege in Belgium.

A report in Live Science says that people across cultures and religious relate 'similar themes' on near-death experience.

The experience includes being out of the body, passing through a tunnel, river or door toward warm, glowing light. Some others report that dead loved ones greeted them, and feel being called back to their bodies, or "told it is not time to go yet".

"In the study , the team gave memory questionnaires to eight coma survivors who had near-death experience, six who had coma memories but no memory of near-death experiences, seven who had no memories of their coma, and 18 people who had not had any of these experiencs," the report says.

Even years later, when their memories were compared, the near-death experiences appeared 'hyper-real'. They were emotionally more vivid than all other memories.